MONTREAL — Police evacuated about 50 homes in Cartierville on Saturday morning after reports a resident of the neighbourhood manufactured explosive devices in his home.

Acting on information from investigators, the SWAT team was dispatched to a triplex on Robertine Barry St. around 9 a.m. They cleared a few nearby houses before breaching the dwelling and recovering what they believe to be improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

Police locked down the street and, as of Saturday night, residents of the 50 evacuated homes remain displaced. They’ve been taken in by the Red Cross, according to Sgt. Daniel Lacoursière of the Montreal police.

“We were told not to move,” said one man, who lives on Robertine Barry St. “(Police) haven’t said much else.”

An 18-year-old man suspected of manufacturing the IEDs was arrested at a separate location, Lacoursière said.

Detectives are meeting with the suspect and police are investigating the materials seized from the triplex to verify if they are, in fact, explosives. However, the SWAT team’s bomb-defusing robot is on site and was still neutralizing the apparent explosives Saturday night.

Once the robot’s work is complete, police will execute a search warrant of the triplex. Investigators will then meet with the suspect a second time, Lacoursère said.

One police source told The Gazette they found what appear to be several pressure-cooker bombs similar to the ones used in the Boston Marathon bombing. Molotov cocktails were also found on site, according to the source. However this information remains unconfirmed by police officials.

The Gazette interviewed several residents of the street, none of whom knew the identity of the suspect.

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